Lee: YAHOOOO Secret Invasion is Over!!! YAHOOO YAHOOO YAHOOO… but why don’t we have any idea what’s going to happen? This stinks.
Jim: I agree, all of these classified solicitations are a pain. Have the time the hype is all baloney anyway, but whatever.
Jim: I agree, all of these classified solicitations are a pain. Have the time the hype is all baloney anyway, but whatever.
MARVEL'S 70th ANNIVERSARY POSTER24 x 36... $8.99 On-Sale 1/21/09Lee: Posters are all well and good but usually not for me. Because this was anniversary poster, it piqued my interest so I decided to take a closer look. In the background there are 7 rows of comics, one for each decade of publishing. Each row has six covers. Now, I think that’s pretty hard to pick the six best covers from an entire decade of publishing. And, overall I think whoever chose the covers did pretty well… for the most part. For some reason, Marvel chose two really bad covers to represent the 90’s. Let’s see, the colors are wrong on New Mutants 87 and the Punisher War Zone 31 cover. Other than that, it’s pretty cool.
Jim: It maybe a cool poster, but I have no interest in posters anymore.
AVENGERS: THE INITIATIVE #21
DEADPOOL #6
INVINCIBLE IRON MAN #9
MIGHTY AVENGERS #21
MS. MARVEL #35
NEW AVENGERS #49
THUNDERBOLTS #128
WAR MACHINE #2
MARVEL SPOTLIGHT: DARK REIGN
UNCANNY X-MEN ANNUAL #2
Lee: Certainly makes it easy to preview books when 10 books have no description whatsoever. Oh yes, very easy indeed. Actually, it reminds me of days pre-previews when there was some anticipation for the next issue because you didn’t know what was going to happen.
Jim: That is a great point Lee, before all the solicitation stuff we would have no clue about what was in the next issue and would only have a limited idea of what might be coming out that week. The surprise factor is gone and I guess Marvel is trying to bring some of that back as best they can.
SCOURGE OF THE GODS #1 (of 3) Written by VALRIE MANGIN Penciled and Covers by ALEKSA GAJI After a thousand years of peace, the Orbis - the Roman Galactic Empire that thought itself almighty - trembles down to its foundations. The Huns, savage warriors that came out of nowhere, are trying to conquer it. King Attila has already pillaged and burned dozens of planets without any legion being able to stop him or even slow him down. And unfortunately for Rome - Kerka, the Hun's goddess of chaos herself - is back. But the Gods have a taste for tragedy: Kerka has been reincarnated in the body of Flavia Aetia, a young Roman girl. Is Flavia truly this macabre divinity? Is she the by-product of a terrifying plot? Or is she only the victim of a terrible destiny? A free adaptation of Hun king Attila and the Roman general Flavius Aetius's confrontation, SCOURGE OF THE GODS replays the eternal struggle between order and chaos on the galactic level. Halfway between sci-fi and heroic fantasy, the huge epic fresco proclaims antique grandeur as well as the barbarism that lies in our future. 56 PGS./Mature ...$5.99
SCOURGE OF THE GODS #1 (of 3) Written by VALRIE MANGIN Penciled and Covers by ALEKSA GAJI After a thousand years of peace, the Orbis - the Roman Galactic Empire that thought itself almighty - trembles down to its foundations. The Huns, savage warriors that came out of nowhere, are trying to conquer it. King Attila has already pillaged and burned dozens of planets without any legion being able to stop him or even slow him down. And unfortunately for Rome - Kerka, the Hun's goddess of chaos herself - is back. But the Gods have a taste for tragedy: Kerka has been reincarnated in the body of Flavia Aetia, a young Roman girl. Is Flavia truly this macabre divinity? Is she the by-product of a terrifying plot? Or is she only the victim of a terrible destiny? A free adaptation of Hun king Attila and the Roman general Flavius Aetius's confrontation, SCOURGE OF THE GODS replays the eternal struggle between order and chaos on the galactic level. Halfway between sci-fi and heroic fantasy, the huge epic fresco proclaims antique grandeur as well as the barbarism that lies in our future. 56 PGS./Mature ...$5.99Lee: I continue to be impressed with Marvel’s Soleil line. This is one of the few marketing decisions that I have agreed with from Marvel and I like that I can still stay in the company line. In a longer term sense, I wonder if this will fall on the same hard times that DC’s Humanoids books did?
Jim: I worry about the sales on these books, but I will happily order the ones that look interesting to me as long as Marvel is putting them out.
DAREDEVIL #115 Written by ED BRUBAKER Penciled by MICHAEL LARK Cover by MARKO DJURDJEVICThe shocking ending of LADY BULLSEYE is here! It's a non-stop kung-fu extravaganza, as Daredevil faces Lady Bullseye and the Hand - and confronts one of the toughest decisions of his life! 32 PGS./Rated T+ ...$2.99
Jim: I worry about the sales on these books, but I will happily order the ones that look interesting to me as long as Marvel is putting them out.
DAREDEVIL #115 Written by ED BRUBAKER Penciled by MICHAEL LARK Cover by MARKO DJURDJEVICThe shocking ending of LADY BULLSEYE is here! It's a non-stop kung-fu extravaganza, as Daredevil faces Lady Bullseye and the Hand - and confronts one of the toughest decisions of his life! 32 PGS./Rated T+ ...$2.99 Lee: New topic, gruesome covers. Marvel seems to have decided that they can’t do embarrassed to be a fanboy covers anymore so they’ve gone for blood-n-guts instead. I think card stuck in DD’s head dripping blood is a nice touch.
Jim: Well sex or violence, it has to be one or the other. I’d prefer the sex.
DR. DOOM AND THE MASTERS OF EVIL #1 Written by PAUL
TOBIN Art by PATRICK SCHERBERGER Cover by ROGER CRUZALL NEW TALES!!! You've gotta ask yourself: If Doctor Doom's the most evil guy ever, how much more evil's it gonna get when he puts a whole TEAM of VILLAINS to work? It's the series where the bad guys get their say, and the Sinister Six are saying they aren't sinister enough! So, what's the solution? How about Kraven stealing a vibranium staff from the Louvre? Sweet! And how about Electro designs a new suit to better channel his powers? Great idea! And how about ramping up Mysterio's powers by breaking into Stark Industries to steal a miniaturized super-component, battling both Iron Man and Dr. Strange in the process? 32 PGS./Rated T+ ...$2.99
Jim: Well sex or violence, it has to be one or the other. I’d prefer the sex.
DR. DOOM AND THE MASTERS OF EVIL #1 Written by PAUL
TOBIN Art by PATRICK SCHERBERGER Cover by ROGER CRUZALL NEW TALES!!! You've gotta ask yourself: If Doctor Doom's the most evil guy ever, how much more evil's it gonna get when he puts a whole TEAM of VILLAINS to work? It's the series where the bad guys get their say, and the Sinister Six are saying they aren't sinister enough! So, what's the solution? How about Kraven stealing a vibranium staff from the Louvre? Sweet! And how about Electro designs a new suit to better channel his powers? Great idea! And how about ramping up Mysterio's powers by breaking into Stark Industries to steal a miniaturized super-component, battling both Iron Man and Dr. Strange in the process? 32 PGS./Rated T+ ...$2.99 Lee: There are so many books that make me shake my head in wonder because they are being published. This would be one of them. Why do we have this? Spiderman’s tangled web failed in 90’s. Super Villain Team Up failed in the 70’s. I can’t help but think that this will have a short life span too.
Jim: The hype should read, you know it is a loser book and we know it too, but we are hoping that since it is Marvel you will buy this book instead and not that well written and produced non-big two book next to us on the shelf, because you are an idiot and only buy Marvel and DC.
OFFICIAL INDEX TO THE MARVEL UNIVERSE #1 Follow the history of the Marvel Universe as it unfolds month by month with the All-New Official Index to the Marvel Universe. Each issue provides synopses for dozens of individual comics, including back-up strips, introducing you to the characters, teams, places and equipment that appeared within, providing vital information about first appearances, where they last showed up and where they appeared next! Join us as we chronicle the Marvel Universe, starting with Spider-Man (from Amazing Fantasy #15 on), Iron Man (from Tales of Suspense #39 on) and the X-Men (from 1963's X-Men #1 on). 64 PGS./Rated A ...$3.99
OFFICIAL INDEX TO THE MARVEL UNIVERSE #1 Follow the history of the Marvel Universe as it unfolds month by month with the All-New Official Index to the Marvel Universe. Each issue provides synopses for dozens of individual comics, including back-up strips, introducing you to the characters, teams, places and equipment that appeared within, providing vital information about first appearances, where they last showed up and where they appeared next! Join us as we chronicle the Marvel Universe, starting with Spider-Man (from Amazing Fantasy #15 on), Iron Man (from Tales of Suspense #39 on) and the X-Men (from 1963's X-Men #1 on). 64 PGS./Rated A ...$3.99 Lee: I am a total Marvel continuity nerd. At least I was until Marvel started retconning everything in existence. But this is right up my alley. I’m very interested to see what this will look like.
Jim: I have totally given up on trying to be a continuity person. Marvel and DC don’t care, so how can I care.
RUINS #1 Written by WARREN ELLIS Painted by CLIFF &
TERESE NIELSEN, TERESE NIELSEN & CHRIS MOELLER Cover by CLIFF & TERESE NIELSENMarvel's favorite pessimist looks through his darkest glass yet into a world where "marvel" is just another word for "horror." Nuclear warfare, internment camps, government oppression, drug addiction, degradation, suicide...and those are just the ones we have words for. Have the men and women we know as heroes made the situation better or worse? Here's a hint: In the Ruins, radiation only kills. Collecting RUINS #1-2. 80 PGS./One-Shot/Parental Advisory ...$4.99
RUINS #1 Written by WARREN ELLIS Painted by CLIFF &
TERESE NIELSEN, TERESE NIELSEN & CHRIS MOELLER Cover by CLIFF & TERESE NIELSENMarvel's favorite pessimist looks through his darkest glass yet into a world where "marvel" is just another word for "horror." Nuclear warfare, internment camps, government oppression, drug addiction, degradation, suicide...and those are just the ones we have words for. Have the men and women we know as heroes made the situation better or worse? Here's a hint: In the Ruins, radiation only kills. Collecting RUINS #1-2. 80 PGS./One-Shot/Parental Advisory ...$4.99Lee: I know nothing about this. I don’t even remember when it was published. But, it’s very early Ellis work for Marvel so it should be good. Why don’t they reprint his EXCELLENT work on Hellstorm first before this junk.
Jim: I’m ordering this out of morbid curiosity and to read some early Ellis work, before he was Warren Ellis.
SQUADRON SUPREME #7 Written by HOWARD CHAYKIN Penciled by MARCO CHECCHETTO Cover by MIKE DEODATO"ONE FINE DAY" PART 1 (OF 6)America-devastated in a war of superhumans, abandoned by her greatest heroes...and rebuilt by Nick Fury. After last issue's shocking ending, the master manipulator will face a few old friends-friends who have some interesting ideas about the world of tomorrow. But does Fury have a place in it? Join writer Howard Chaykin as he welcomes superstar-in-the-making Marco Checchetto as the Squadron enters a bold new era! 32 PGS./Parental Advisory ...$2.99
SQUADRON SUPREME #7 Written by HOWARD CHAYKIN Penciled by MARCO CHECCHETTO Cover by MIKE DEODATO"ONE FINE DAY" PART 1 (OF 6)America-devastated in a war of superhumans, abandoned by her greatest heroes...and rebuilt by Nick Fury. After last issue's shocking ending, the master manipulator will face a few old friends-friends who have some interesting ideas about the world of tomorrow. But does Fury have a place in it? Join writer Howard Chaykin as he welcomes superstar-in-the-making Marco Checchetto as the Squadron enters a bold new era! 32 PGS./Parental Advisory ...$2.99 Lee: Sadly enough this looks like it might be interesting. If the series had started here instead of where it did I might actually be reading this. I wonder if anyone even made it through the first arc in the series because none of my friends did.
Jim: I’m avoiding this book like the plague.
CAPTAIN BRITAIN BY ALAN MOORE & ALAN DAVIS
OMNIBUS HC Written by ALAN MOORE, ALAN DAVIS, DAVE THORPE, PAUL NEARY, MICHAEL CARLIN, STEVE CRADDOCK, MIKE COLLINS, JAMIE DELANO & CHRIS CLAREMONT Penciled by ALAN DAVIS & PAUL NEARY Covers by ALAN DAVISOne of the Marvel Universe's most staggering sagas from two of Britain's most remarkable writers, reprinted in total for the first time! Captain Britain fights to save a universe...and fails! But a single reality is small change in the game Merlyn's playing against Mad Jim Jaspers, who's rewriting reality so he's the center of the universe! Worlds collide, heroes and villains die, and Captain Britain's beside himself - except when he's fighting himself...to the death! Featuring the first appearances of the metamorphic Meggan, Opal Luna Saturnyne, the Captain Britain Corps, and more! Plus: Psylocke joins the X-Men, and the X-Men join Captain Britain on a cosmic quest into the secrets of life and death! The fiendish Fury, the horrific Horde and the malevolent Mojo are only a few of the adversaries who await within! Also guest-starring the New Mutants and Captain America! Collecting MARVEL SUPER-HEROES (UK) #377-388, THE DAREDEVILS (UK) #1-11, CAPTAIN AMERICA #305-306, MIGHTY WORLD OF MARVEL (UK) #7-16, CAPTAIN BRITAIN (UK) #1-14, NEW MUTANTS ANNUAL #2 and UNCANNY X-MEN ANNUAL #11.680 PGS./Rated T+ ...$99.99
CAPTAIN BRITAIN BY ALAN MOORE & ALAN DAVIS
OMNIBUS HC Written by ALAN MOORE, ALAN DAVIS, DAVE THORPE, PAUL NEARY, MICHAEL CARLIN, STEVE CRADDOCK, MIKE COLLINS, JAMIE DELANO & CHRIS CLAREMONT Penciled by ALAN DAVIS & PAUL NEARY Covers by ALAN DAVISOne of the Marvel Universe's most staggering sagas from two of Britain's most remarkable writers, reprinted in total for the first time! Captain Britain fights to save a universe...and fails! But a single reality is small change in the game Merlyn's playing against Mad Jim Jaspers, who's rewriting reality so he's the center of the universe! Worlds collide, heroes and villains die, and Captain Britain's beside himself - except when he's fighting himself...to the death! Featuring the first appearances of the metamorphic Meggan, Opal Luna Saturnyne, the Captain Britain Corps, and more! Plus: Psylocke joins the X-Men, and the X-Men join Captain Britain on a cosmic quest into the secrets of life and death! The fiendish Fury, the horrific Horde and the malevolent Mojo are only a few of the adversaries who await within! Also guest-starring the New Mutants and Captain America! Collecting MARVEL SUPER-HEROES (UK) #377-388, THE DAREDEVILS (UK) #1-11, CAPTAIN AMERICA #305-306, MIGHTY WORLD OF MARVEL (UK) #7-16, CAPTAIN BRITAIN (UK) #1-14, NEW MUTANTS ANNUAL #2 and UNCANNY X-MEN ANNUAL #11.680 PGS./Rated T+ ...$99.99Lee: I really don’t like the omnibus’s. I know lots of people do but I find that 1000 plus pages is just to big a book. BUT, if this is the only way to get Alan Moore’s Cap’n Britain in hc then I am all over this. This is an absolute fantastic story with gorgeous art. And, it is well worth your investment if you’ve never read the series.
Jim: Pass. I have had my fill on this mammoth book that are almost impossible to really enjoy.
WOLVERINE: NOT DEAD YET PREMIERE HC Written by WARREN ELLIS Penciled by LEINIL FRANCIS YU Covers by LEINIL FRANCIS YUWolverine's past is full of nasty characters, but few as fiendish as the White Ghost, a murderous mercenary whom Logan thought he'd left for dead during his spy years! But this Ghost won't be laid to rest until he's run Wolverine through a gauntlet of Adamantium weapons, killing the mutant maverick with the very metal that's saved his life so many times! Unwilling to risk his friends, Wolverine stands alone in a story of intrigue, romance and devastation, culminating in a clash between two killers! Collecting WOLVERINE #119-122.112 PGS./Rated T+ ...$19.99
WOLVERINE: NOT DEAD YET PREMIERE HC Written by WARREN ELLIS Penciled by LEINIL FRANCIS YU Covers by LEINIL FRANCIS YUWolverine's past is full of nasty characters, but few as fiendish as the White Ghost, a murderous mercenary whom Logan thought he'd left for dead during his spy years! But this Ghost won't be laid to rest until he's run Wolverine through a gauntlet of Adamantium weapons, killing the mutant maverick with the very metal that's saved his life so many times! Unwilling to risk his friends, Wolverine stands alone in a story of intrigue, romance and devastation, culminating in a clash between two killers! Collecting WOLVERINE #119-122.112 PGS./Rated T+ ...$19.99Lee: So… Wolverine “isn’t dead yet.” I hear this little voice saying “I’m not dead yet! I’m feeling better. Really I am.” I wonder if we’ll get the Wolverine: It’s Just a Flesh Wound Trade next? “It’s just a flesh wound. I’ve had worse!”
Jim: My question is, if Wolverine gets cut in two, say right down the middle, do both halves grow back into Wolverine?
CAPTAIN AMERICA: THE TRUTH PREMIERE HC Written by
ROBERT MORALES Penciled and Cover by KYLE BAKER In every war, people demand their champion. In World War II, that hero was Captain America. TRUTH is the controversial, declassified story of the African American men involuntarily subjected to the U.S. War Department's "Super Soldier" project, in a race to develop a serum that might turn the tide against the Axis powers ... if the Nazi's didn't get to it first. An epic spanning the time just before the attack on Pearl Harbor into the present day, TRUTH finally reveals the tragic sacrifice that a Black infantry unit made for their country - and what those sacrifices mean to a white man named Steve Rogers. Collecting TRUTH #1-7. 168 PGS./Parental Advisory ...$24.99Lee: This is very very interesting because I remember when the series was released. It started with lots of hype and then seemed to disappear. But, those that stuck with it really love it. And, it seems to have a cult following. I just might have to try this.
DAREDEVIL: BORN AGAIN PREMIERE HC Written by FRANK MILLER Penciled by DAVID MAZZUCCHELLI Covers by DAVID MAZZUCCHELLI"And I - I have shown him... that a man without hope is a man without fear." The definitive Daredevil tale! Karen Page, Matt Murdock's former lover, has traded away the Man Without Fear's secret identity for a drug fix. Now, Daredevil must find strength as the Kingpin of Crime wastes no time taking him down as low as a human can get. Collecting DAREDEVIL #226-233.248 PGS./Rated T+ ...$24.99X-MEN: PROTEUS PREMIERE HCWritten by CHRIS CLAREMONT, JOHN BYRNE,ANN NOCENTI & FABIAN NICIEZAPenciled by JOHN BYRNE, JOHN BOLTON & MARK BRIGHT Covers by DAVE COCKRUM & GEORGE PEREZOne of the X-Men's greatest allies must face her darkest secret when a child born of violence bends reality to his whims! The paranormal Proteus battles the X-Men in body and soul, shaking the psyches of even their strongest! But as Marvel's mightiest mutants face one world-threatening wonder, an even worse one awaits as the stage is set for the debut of Dark Phoenix!Collecting X-MEN #125-128, and CLASSIC X-MEN #32-33 and #36.128 PGS./Rated T+ ...$19.99
Lee: I’m wondering how many times Marvel can reprint the same material over and over and over. I know the X-men book exists in tpb, Masterwork, Omnibus, and now this. The Daredevil is close to the same. How about reprinting something that hasn’t been done before?
Jim: There has to be diminishing returns on this also. I mean all the fans who wanted this is HC or trade have to be close to done, so I guess adding the Classic X-Men stuff is the enticement.
SECRET INVASION TPB200 PGS./Rated T+ ...$29.99SECRET INVASION: HOME INVASION TPB104 PGS./Rated T+ ... $14.99
SECRET INVASION: WAR MACHINE TPB96 PGS./Rated T+ ...$12.99
Lee: Luckily Secret Invasion is over so the issues won’t flood the stands and we can get back to normal story telling. Instead we can flood the tpb stands on overwhelm that area. BUT WAIT, this doesn’t even cover the Avengers tpb’s required for that part of the story.
Jim: I read that if you got all the Secret Invasion comics it cost close to $400 retail, now you can spend it again on the trades.
Lee: Not the best, but not the worst month for Marvel. Actually, it appears to be more of the same old-same old.
Jim: OMG, I almost died from heart failure, how Lee can only choose this amount of books. When Lee picks I hardly ever add, because he picks everything, but this month he showed some restraint. Get ready for some heavy snow storms.
Lee: Not the best, but not the worst month for Marvel. Actually, it appears to be more of the same old-same old.
Jim: OMG, I almost died from heart failure, how Lee can only choose this amount of books. When Lee picks I hardly ever add, because he picks everything, but this month he showed some restraint. Get ready for some heavy snow storms.
I'm not sure that's the final version of the poster. For one, it would make sense to show 10 covers per decade, not six. I think the logo is nice, but I don't like that it obscures the covers. Plus, there's no representation of the Fantastic Four. Where's the Thing love? I personally have always enjoyed New Mutants #87. It's one of the last books I can remember buying from a 7-11 (Downtown Blacksburg on the way to my survey class). It's also climbing up in value.
ReplyDeleteI'm definitely getting the Captain Britain Omni (DM cover). I have the trade from way back, but it left out a lot of story. I recently got the Howard the Duck Omni and it is fantastic. I resisted for a while because I have almost all the originals, but it was totally worth it.
Since y'all sometimes pick books you may not actually get, how about picking Spider-Girl next time? She needs all the exposure she can get.